Closure operator for annealing furnaces and the like



Aug. 12, 1930. A. e LOBLEY CLOSURE OPERATOR FOR ANNEALING FURNACES ANDTHE LIKE Filed Sept. 22. 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet l L M m. Ma PM'HM Aug. 1 2,1930. A. G. LOBLEY CLOSURE OPERATDR FOR ANNEALING' FURNACES AND THE LIKEFiled Sept. 22, 1926 Fig.5. gr

4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 12, 1930. A. G. LOBLEY 1,773,049-

CLQSURE OPERATOR F QR AiJNEALING FURNACES AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 22.1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Aug. 12, 1930. A. G. LOBLEY 1,773,049

CLOSURE OPERATOR FOR ANNEAL'INQ FURNACES AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 22.1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVINTDR Patented Aug. 12, 1930 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE ALFRED GLYNNE LOiBLEY, OF CHAPEL-EN-LE-FRITH ENGLAND,ASSIGNOB TO BIR- MINGHAM ELECTRIC FURNACES LIMITED, 01 BIRMINGHAM,ENGLAND, A COMPANY OF GREAT BRITAIN CLOSURE OPERATOR FOR AN NEALINGFURNACES AND THE LIKE Application filed. September 22, 1926, Serial No.

This invention relates to annealing and other furnaces, mullles, ovensand the like, and comprises improvements in the mounting or suspensionof the doors or closures for the working chambers of such furnaces orthe like; said improvements being also applicable to the mounting ofremovable working-chamber bottoms, grates and slmilar members that needto be displaced from and restored to their normal working positions forcharging or other purposes.

According tothe said invention, it is proposed to suspend or mount thedoor or similar closure member of a furnace or the like from or upon aswinging linkage system to which the said closure member is so connectedthat, throughout its movement in relation to the complementary chargingor other aperture, the closure member remains or is retained insubstantial parallelism with the plane containing the said aperture. Theimproved suspension thus realizes the advantages that, when applied toan end-charging furnace, it enables the door to be opened withoutinvolving the turning of the hot face thereof towards the operatorwhilst when applied to a bottom-loading furnace, it enables the closuremember to be also used as a platform for carrying the working charges.

The closure member and its suspension or mounting may be, and preferablyis, balanced or counterweighted by a system of weights which not onlyfacilitate or ease'thc opening and closing operations, or the movementof the closure from and into its normal working position, but may alsoserve to retain the said member in both its normal working or closedposition and in its charging or open position, whilst in furtheraccordance with the said invention, the door or closure member of theimproved system comprises a part which, in the closed or workingposition, sockets into or is located within the charging aperture and issurrounded by or associated with a seal which assists or promotesefiicient working of a furnace or the like both by excluding externalair from the working chamber and by substantially reducing heat losses.

In the drawings:

186,966, and in Great Brita-in October 1, 1925.

Fig. 1 is a front view of one form of apparatus constructed inaccordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of an end ofthe furnace shown in Fig. 1, inwhich the operatlng mechanism is shown with the closure 1n its openposition;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the parts in their closedposition;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing a furnace with a bottomclosure, with the closure in closed position;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 with a closure in its open position;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the mechanism shown in Fig. 4, from theshaft side; and

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 6 from the closure end of thestructure.

In the accompanying drawings, Figures 1 .to 3 show an application of theinvention to the balanced and self-retaining suspension of a door for anend-charging annealing or like furnace, whilst Figures 4 to 7 show anapplication to the mounting of the bottom closure of a bottom-loadingfurnace.

Describing first the end-charging system, Figure 1 is an elevation ofthe charging or door end of the furnace, showing the general arrangementof the balanced door-suspension. In this view, the several parts areshown in the positions they assume when the door is closed.

Figures 2 and 3 are side views, upon a larger scale, respectivelyshowing the door in the open and closed positions, and illustrating thearrangement or disposition of the balance and retaining weights.

In the application of the invention illustrated in the said Figures 1 to3, where the furnace hasa rectangular mouth or charging aperture a, thedoor I) is provided, on its inner side, with a rectangular closure orprojecting portion 5 adapted, when the said door is closed, to socketinto the said a er-. ture as shown, whilst the inner face 6 of the partof the door body I) which surrounds the said socketing closure b may beada ted to bed closely against the end of the urnace -frame-wor-k. inthe vicinity of the aperture a and may be faced with a refractorymaterial b of a more or less compressible nature such as asbestos,which, on the'closin of the door, makes a practically sealed jointetween the latter and the furnace wall to prevent the admission ofair'into, and heat losses from,

than the closure portion of the door to permit the latter entering andleaving with a parallel motion as hereinafter described.

For sus ending such a door so that the closure portion thereof may bethus socketed into or engaged with the furnace mouth, and also to ensurethat the hot inner face shall re main presented to the furnace end oraway from the operator during manipulation, a

parallel-motion suspension is adopted in which the door-structure is sopivoted to swinging links that it automatically preserves aiperpendicular osition throughout its range 0 movement. l iithe exampleshown in Figures 1 to 3, a rotatory shaft 0 is mounted horizontally insuitable bearings a above the mouth of the furnace and has fixed to it,a pair of arms (I, d which swing in planes lmmediately outwards of theends of the door, or in a plane substantially erpendicular to the'planeof the wall throu which the furnace opening extends and rom which armsthe door is plvotally'suspended at d, d. The shaft is fitted orconnected with a winch handle e or other means of actuation, and thefree pivotal connections (1 d, between the door ends and the suspensionarms are arranged above the centre of gravity of the door; oralternatively the door is counterweighted below the pivots, so that itwill hang 1n a perpendicular plane during opening and closing. Theactuation of such a mechanism in the opening'direction removes the doorfrom in front of the furnace mouth and takes the same to a positionwholl above and clear of the said mouth, leavin the latter unobstructedfor access to the wor 'ng chamber as shown in Figure 2, whilst actuationof the sus ension in the reverse direction swings the oor back to themouth-closing position as shown in Figures 1 and 3.

'Weighted levers or other balance weights may be applied to theoperating shaft or other parts of the suspension to balance the weightof the moving parts and render the system self-retaining in both theclosed or fully opened positions of-the door. In the construction shown,weights f that balance the Wei ht of the door are ap lied to levers Ffixe to the ends of the sha c that carry the door-suspension arms; theseweighted levers being dis osed on the opposite side of the shaft to t esus ension arms and are carried clear of the end of the furnacestructure so that they will swing in planes outwards of and parallelwith the sides of the latter during actuation'of the mechanism. Anadditional retaining weight g is carried from an extenstuds have keyedto them,

a v sion 9 on one ofthe balance levers m such relation to the centreofIthe'shaft c that, when the balanced door-is in either of thepositions shown in Figures 2 and 3, the said weight is either above orbelow thcisaid shaft centre and the working chamber by way of thechar'g--' ing aperture. This aperture is rather largerexerts by gravityaleverage on the system that effectually prevents displacement of thedoor from such posi ion. *In other words, the suspension isself-retaini'ng in both the open and closed positions.

As regards the balanced suspension for the removable door or bbtto ingfurnace is shownin' Figures 4 to 7.

Figure 4 is an elevationshowing' the doorbottom and suspension mechanismin the normal or' working position. H

, Figure 5 shows thecharging osition and also illustrates, indottedlines, 10w the suspension, during themovement of the bottom to andfrom its working position, maintains the said bottom in ahorizontalplane, parallel with the plane containin the charging aperture of thefurnace. g v

Figure 6 is an elevation from' a point of View at right angles toFigures; and 5, and

Figure 7 is a detail view showing the connection of the bottom withthelinkage.

of a-bottom-loadv 1 In these figures, z" indicates the furnacestructure, and i the working chamber which is open at i to the undersideof the said structure and is adapted to be closed by the door orremovable bottom y. This bottom, comprises,

on its upper side, a closure portion j that also constitutes a platformor su' port for the furnace charges and is adapte position, to socket'into the aperture 11 as shown in Figure 4; sealing of the 'oint beinthe working tweenthe door-body and the parts 0 the furmotion linkage andcom rises a rotatable shaft is which is disposed a ong the underside ofthe furnace para lel with the bottom aperture i and is furnished with apair or carrier arms k, 7:, that move with the shaft and whoseextremities are formed with bearings for fulcrum-studs m, m that projectfrom the op osite ends of the bottom in the longitudina centre of thelatter. These fulcrum ing linksn, n, which are definitely located atright angles to the said bottom, and are also connected, by the pivotedradius rods o, 0 to a pair of fixed or anchorage brackets p, p thatdepend from the furnace structure in the plane of the shaft is; thedistance between the centres of the.

shaft is and studs W, m being equal to the a pair of depend--perpendicular hangers distance between the centres of the radiusrodpivots. This parallel-motion suspension linkage provides for theswinging of the bottom from the working position Figure 4 to the loadingposition clear of the furnace (Figure 5) and vice versa, whilst byvirtue of the fact that the door fulcrum studs are keyed to linkagemembers n, p which are constrained, by their associated members, tomaintain perpendicularity throughout the movement in both directions,the bottom itself is positively retained or held in a horizontal planein all positions of the suspension. A sufficient surrounding clearance(as shown in Figures 4 and 5) is provided between the closure part ofthe horizontally-supported bottom and the bottom aperture of the furnaceto permit of the said closure part entering and leaving the saidaperture on completion of the closing movement and on commencement ofthe opening movement.

The bottom and suspension mechanism-is balanced to assist opening andclosing by a weight p which may be applied to levers or arms 39extending from the shaft is in the opposite direction tothebottom-carrier arms 10 k and so arranged that they swing clear of theends of the furnace structure. These weightsmay be sufficiently heavy tooverbalance the door and suspension and thus also serve to automaticallyretain the door inboth the working and charging positions.

Having described my invention, What I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent fixed supporting means, and a pair of arms for supportingthe closure pivotally connected to the supporting means and the closure,

said arms lying in a p ane which is substantially parallel with theplane of the furnace wall through which he opening extends when theclosure is in closing position, Whereby in the first opening movement ofthe closure, the closure wil be moved in a plane substantiallyperpendicular to the plane of said furnace wall.

2. A furnace having an opening through a wall thereof, a closure for theopening having a portion adapted to extend into the opening, supportingbrackets connected to the furnace, a shaft mounted in said brackets,apair of parallel arms connected to the shaft, a pivotal connectionbetween the outer ends of said counter-balancing means for the closureconnected to said shaft.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

ALFRED GLYNNE LOBLEY.-

